


The Stories We Say

by arivess



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Ignis/Noctis main, M/M, Multi, Noctis/Luna seconary, Polyamory, spoilers in later chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-24
Updated: 2017-03-24
Packaged: 2018-10-09 23:19:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10424046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arivess/pseuds/arivess
Summary: Noctis and his friends go on a roadtrip to meet Lunafreya, his bride-to-be, at Altissia. Things happen. Wait, this sounds like the plot of the actual game?Or uh. Noctis frets about his betrothal to the lovely Lunafreya, while at the same time finding himself drawn closer and closer to his friends, particularly one bespectacled advisor.Story mostly follows the game to Altissia, diverges afterwards. Also has random bits of the most-probably-not-canon past. Can't really say more without spoilering.Spoiler warning for later chapters!





	

**Author's Note:**

> Iiiiii would just like to warn everyone that this story doesn't really go in a happy direction. In fact, it goes in a most not-very-happy direction, very quickly. There will probably be a happy ending, but I haven't gotten that far in my writing yet. (Or um. I haven't gotten very far at all. I meant to pre-write, and then I impatient and decided I wanted to just post something for now.)
> 
> For people concerned about pairings - the main pairing will be Ignis/Noctis, with Noctis/Luna as a slightly secondary ship. However, both will be pretty prominent, and I wanted to explore polyamory themes. So if you ship one and despise the other, please take note. There might also be some weird Ignis/Luna or something later on. Sorta.
> 
> I think that's it for general notes. I'll put chapter-specific warnings in chapter notes later, both for spoilers and potentially triggering content. Chapter 1 is pretty safe.

“Treaty, huh…”

 

Noctis Lucis Caelum was scared. There were a lot of things that scared him: his father’s ailing health and the prospect of his future as king; and the dangers of their trip and the prospect of his far more immediate future as some creature’s dinner. But right now, he wasn’t thinking about any of those. Right now, the Crown Prince of Lucis was absolutely terrified of something a lot more frivolous: his betrothal to his childhood friend.

 

“Noct. A gil for your thoughts?”

 

Noctis looked up to find his advisor standing before him, holding out a plate of skewers. Dinner. He hadn’t heard, mulling over the radio transmission from earlier that day. As Noctis accepted the plate, Ignis took a seat beside him, a mug of coffee in one hand.

 

“It’s nothing.” Even as he said it, Noctis knew he was somewhat less than convincing.

 

Ignis stared at him, sharp, calm eyes reading every unspoken thought on his face. Framed by firelight, the royal advisor looked mystical against the backdrop of Galdin Quay, flaring red glow and deep black shadows in sharp contrast with the cold blue of the horizon where sky met sea. Noctis chewed on a skewer, watching him as he picked out the words he wanted to say. A gentle breeze wafted in from the ocean, adding the scent of fish and brine to the roast meat of their dinner. Noctis sniffed and imagined he could catch hints of foreign spices mixed in the wind, of Altissia across the waters. They were just one boat ride away now, but there were no boats there to bear them. Their best bet was half a promise from a blackmailer.

 

“Are you ready to meet Lady Lunafreya?”

 

And there was his advisor, one step ahead of him already. Noctis wasn’t sure if it was a lucky guess, or if Ignis could read him _that_ well, but he was willing to bet on the latter. Noctis dropped his gaze, and took a good, long stare at his dinner before answering, keeping his voice level. “Yeah. Of course.” He was proud of how casual and calm he managed to sound. He wasn’t sure he was fooling Ignis at all, but he liked to pretend he was. “Do you think Dino will keep his promise?”

 

“It would be exceedingly unwise of him not to.” Ignis leaned forward, taking a sip of coffee before resting his chin on his free hand. The calm confidence in his voice took Noctis aback, though he supposed it was only natural. Either Dino would keep his word, or they would _make_ sure he did – after all, one did not threaten the Crown Prince lightly, nor make him idle promises.

 

“Yeah. Of course.” Just as Noctis thought the topic was dropped and gone and he could go back to fretting on his own, Ignis brought it up again.

 

“What about your own promise?” There was just a hint of worry on Ignis’s face. “You seem rather less enthusiastic now than when we first set out. Are you having second thoughts?”

 

Noctis tried to laugh it off, though he wasn’t sure he was convincing anyone. “Hey, I’m a prince. I was born for political match-ups and arranged marriages. I should count myself lucky I didn’t already get promised to someone before I was born.”

 

“But you are not happy with it.” It wasn’t a question, but Noctis caught a quick flash of confusion in Ignis’s eyes, something rare for the man. “Lady Lunafreya has been your longtime friend. For twelve years, you have been hoping to see her again. Now, the Empire offers peace and hands her to you. One would think this is the most ideal outcome.”

 

“Yes. No. Well. It’s more than that.” Noctis nodded, and shook his head, and nodded again. “I know all that, okay? I just… I don’t know if it’s going to be like I thought it would. I mean, not that there’s anything wrong with Luna. Or with me. Or me and Luna. I just… I thought she actually wanted to… I was really dumb to think… You heard the radio, right? It’s all politics. Do you think she even likes me?”

 

Not quite the crux of his problem, but it was a start.

 

Ignis gave him a curious glance, brows furrowed. “Noct, is that what you’re worried about? You write to each other frequently. I should hardly think she would continue to reciprocate if she didn’t like you.”

 

Noctis didn’t have an answer. Ignis was right; she _had_ written back recently, and she sounded happy enough to see him. But when he heard her on the radio, all she talked about was the treaty, and how happy she was to contribute to the peace, and nothing at all about friends with Noctis or wanting to meet him again.

 

Ignis sighed. Noctis realized he must still have been frowning.

 

“Noct. You had no more choice in the matter than she. Are you unhappy?”

 

“No, of course not!” Noctis’s frown deepened. He wasn’t sure what Ignis was getting at; this wasn’t even _about_ him. “It’s not like I thought I’d be marrying Luna or anything, but I wasn’t expecting anything less than a political arrangement anyway. And you’re right. This _is_ the most ideal outcome we can possibly have. At least she’s my friend. And I’ll be able to protect her this time.”

 

“So then, why would you expect her reaction to be any different?” Ignis downed his coffee, keeping his eyes on Noctis as he got up to pour himself another cup. Unspoken words lingered between them. Noctis understood. Her life was not much different from Noctis’s. She was a princess and the Oracle. She was a prisoner in her own home, then became a bargaining chip in a peace treaty. Marrying a much-needed friend, by her own wish or not, was probably the best thing that could happen to her.

 

Noctis set his plate down and crossed his arms stubbornly. It was a big deal to him, and he didn’t like how lightly Ignis treated it, as if it wasn’t going to affect them forever. “I don’t know how to act around her.”

 

Ignis adjusted his glasses, his expression unreadable as light reflected over them. “You have been thoroughly trained in decorum, even if you choose not to put it to practice most of the time. I have faith you will conduct yourself accordingly.”

 

“Gods, Specs.” Noctis threw up his hands, exasperated. He could swear Ignis was doing this on purpose. “She’s not some fancy dignitary, she’s going to be my _wife_. I’ll go crazy if I have to ‘conduct myself accordingly’ for the rest of my life.”

 

“C’mon, kid.” A loud burp interrupted them as what looked like a small mountain shifted on the other side of the campfire. Noctis clapped a hand over his mouth; he hadn’t meant to involve his other friends, but it was too late. Gladiolus stood up, stretching out his shoulders, a smirk apparent on his face as he stepped into the light. Noctis could only be thankful Prompto didn’t seem to be awake. If Prompto caught wind of him hesitating about being with a pretty girl, he’d never hear the end of it.

 

Noctis’s relief was short-lived, and the next words out of Gladio’s mouth made him think this situation wasn’t much better. “You’ve practically got a wife already anyway. Just treat her like she’s Ignis.”

 

“Luna? Like _Iggy_?” Noctis gaped, mortified at the suggestion. “No way, the she’d leave me for _sure_!”

 

Gladio burst into laughter. “Yeah, well, Iggy’s still here, isn’t he?”

 

Ignis gave him a wry smile. “I can’t quite decide whether I should feel flattered or insulted.”

 

“Yeah, yeah,” Noctis grumbled. “I’m sure you’re terribly offended.”

 

With another loud guffaw, Gladiolus headed over to their tent, discussion apparently resolved in his mind.

 

Noctis stayed sitting by the campfire, searching the dancing flames for an answer. They had an early start ahead of them, but he was too riled up to sleep. It wasn’t like he really expected Gladio to be much help, he supposed – the Shield’s job was to protect him, not to give him relationship advice. Prompto would just tell him not to worry so much, and probably something about how he should be happy to marry such a beautiful woman.

 

Ignis, though… the advisor still sat beside him, coffee mug long empty, just watching him. For a moment, Noctis felt a wave of homesickness wash over him, a longing for his old life, when the two of them would laze around after dinner, discussing things like homework, training, movies, or nothing at all.

 

“It’s still bothering you.” It was a statement, not a question.

 

Noctis grumbled inwardly and cleared his throat. If it didn’t bother him earlier, it did now. “Am I really that bad?”

 

“Absolutely,” came the answer in a dry voice. “Your room is a pigsty. You’re a picky eater, but you can’t cook for yourself.”

 

“Hey…” Noctis frowned. It wasn’t as if he didn’t know all of that, but it wasn’t something he liked hearing.

 

“You leave even the most basic chores for the last possible second in hopes that someone else would do them for you. You skip meetings and bend rules for frivolous reasons. You—”

 

“All right, geez, don't hold back or anything.” Noctis groaned and buried his face in his arms. He wasn’t sure why he said anything at all, now. Ignis had seen all the worst sides of him, would know just how terrible he was.

 

But – he remembered Gladio’s words – Ignis was still there.

 

“Noct. I’m merely teasing.” Ignis sighed, and when he spoke again, his tone was gentle. Noctis felt a light touch on his head, fingers gently riffling through his hair. “You have grown into a fine young man. Your domestic side leaves somewhat to be desired, but I am here to help you with that. You are strong and determined. You give your all to the things that matter. You have a kind, generous soul, and that is something much harder to come by. I am certain any lady would count herself fortunate to have you.”

 

“What, even you?”

 

Noctis took a peek at his advisor’s face, and bit back a grin at his serious expression, an arched brow the only indication he found the entire notion nothing less than completely absurd.

 

“Apologies, my metamorphosis into a lady seemed to have slipped my attention. I will endeavour to notice such a transformation more promptly next time.”

 

“Heh…” Noctis couldn’t help his chuckle as he imagined Ignis as a lady, impeccably dressed in a trim suit, and somehow still towering over him. He decided to keep playing along. “Make sure you do.” He held out a hand. “Well then, Lady Ign—uh.” He sputtered on the name and tried again. “Lady Scientia.” That sounded slightly less strange. Slightly. “What say you to becoming the very extremely super ultra fortunate Princess of Lucis?”

 

Ignis pretended to think about it, giving a quick snap as he nodded. “Ah, brilliant idea. Eloping with a servant while betrothed to a foreign princess. The scandal will do wonders for your exposure. As your advisor, I must… advise… against it, but perhaps you could get Dino to write an article about it if you so desire.”

 

Noctis made a face at the mention and crossed his arms. “Hey, not just any servant. The one who’s practically my wife already, you know? We’re just making it official. Nothing wrong with that. It’d be more scandalous not to, right?”

 

He was pretty proud of that argument, if he had to say so himself. He wanted to see how Ignis was going to rebut _that_.

 

Noctis was almost disappointed with the answer.

 

“And what of your lovely betrothed princess, the Lady Lunafreya? Surely you will not forgo your obligations.”

 

Noctis shrugged. “I’ll just marry her too.”

 

“Noct. I’m starting to think you don’t quite grasp this ‘marriage’ concept.”

 

“I'm the prince, you know.” Noctis frowned as he drew himself up higher and tried to look regal. “I can marry two people if I want.”

 

“I doubt the Empire is going to accept that.”

 

“Yeah, whatever. Fuck the Empire.” Noctis wasn’t sure if it was going to be another lecture about duty, but he wasn’t in the mood for it. He stood with a groan, his muscles aching from a long day of monster-hunting and an evening of sitting on cold, hard rocks. “I’m going to bed.”

 

But he realized, as he lay down, that Ignis never said that he himself would be terribly against the idea. It could just be an oversight, but the thought had him grinning despite himself.

 

After a minute of restless fidgeting, Noctis poked his head out of the tent. Ignis was cleaning up the last remnants of their dinner and packing away whatever they wouldn’t need for breakfast.

 

“Hey, Ignis.” His voice was soft, but in the quiet of the night, it carried.

 

Ignis paused and gave him a quizzical look.

 

“I don’t want a second you. I don’t even want to think about how much nagging I’d get from _two_ of you.” Noctis stuck out his tongue for good measure. Self-satisfied and totally sure Ignis couldn’t possibly come up with a better retort, he finally drifted off to sleep.

 


End file.
